Any exterminators in the house? Veternarians? Got a Cat / Flea question.

[VirtualLarry]

friend 1 lives in a house. Said house used to have a dog months ago, that may have had fleas. Humans living in house at the time were not getting bitten.

Friend 2, stayed over through the summer at friend 1's place. friend 2 brought his cat, no flea collar or flea shampoo. Claims cat had no fleas, which is debatable given owner's reticence to use a flea collar. friend 2, let cat outside on porch several times while staying at friend 1's place.

At conclusion of summer, friend 2 left and went back home. friend 2 claims that friend 1's place gave his cat fleas.

friend 1 was now getting bitten by fleas at the end of summer. friend 1 claims that friend 2, by bring over cat and not having flea collar and allowing cat outside, that the cat brought fleas into friend 1's place.

friend 1 bought a couple of rounds of "bug bombs" for multiple rooms, and was out a considerable expense.

friend 1 explained that he spoke with someone, and that flea infestations need a "host".

friend 2 wants to sue friend 1, for giving his cat fleas.

Whom is correct?

 

[lxskllr]

Friend 1 sounds plausible to me. Different places around a smallish geographic area can range from no fleas to lotsa fleas. A cat that could roam unmolested in one place, could pickup bugs at another with the same behavior. I'd speculate friend 1 has a higher flea load outside, and the cat picked them up and brought them in.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Fleas are outdoors and thrive in warm, humid conditions. If the animals go outdoors, fleas could jump on them. It's rare that they would leave one host for another unless they are in a shelter/kennel in close quarters.

My animals have always been "clean". Bathed frequently and we have a dang clean house. We still have to treat them for fleas or they'll pick them up from just doing their business 5-6 times a day when they go out. We live in the suburbs and not in a jungle.

They should use a flea treatment and get over the blame game.

 

[Torn Mind]

Fleas are tough and can last in a dormant state for years.

IMO, bug bombing is just more show than substance, better for flying critters and the likes of ants. Fleas have their own soaking type sprays.

Rodents can bring in fleas as well.

 

[Captante]

If there were infested dogs in the house that left behind fleas and/or flea eggs they could easily have gotten onto the cat and bred leading to a bunch more fleas.

However as mentioned it's literally impossible to know for sure how the cat ended up with fleas and the friend who wants to sue over it is an idiot.

 

[Brainonska511]

Seems like there is plenty of idiocy to go around, and it would be hard to identify a true source.

If you have a dog or cat (especially if it's going outside), you should be giving it a monthly anti-tick/flea medication to prevent this stuff from the start.

As for the big bombing, use first ask questions later? Why not consult with an expert before filling your home with pesticides that may or may not be appropriate to deal with the specific infestation?

 

[waffleironhead]

How long was the timeframe between dog being in the household and the cat moving in?
Flea eggs can hang around in the carpet, etc and wait for a few months (you'd have to google the exact time estimate) waiting for a host.
IF the time frame matches up, the cat could have gotten infected from the dogs leftover eggs.
Most likely is that the cat got fleas from being outside and brought them into the house.

Cat owner should be dosing their animal with Bravecto or something else to keep the cat flea free.

Good luck all around with the lawsuits etc. Seriously threatening to sue over $50 worth of bug bombs?

 

[VirtualLarry]

How long was the timeframe between dog being in the household and the cat moving in?

8 months?

 

[Captante]

8 months?

That makes the odds the fleas came from the dog a bit slimmer.... from what I've read flea eggs can lie dormant for at most 5 months or so.

However it's also possible there WERE a few rogue fleas that bit people often enough without being noticed to lay new eggs and keep this rolling along till the cat showed up and the population took off.

 

[VirtualLarry]

However it's also possible there WERE a few rogue fleas that bit people often enough without being noticed to lay new eggs and keep this rolling along till the cat showed up and the population took off.

So you're saying, this may not be totally cut-n-dry?

I still think that friend 2 is largely at fault (negligent), for not using an anti-flea collar or treatment for his cat. Especially if he lets the cat outside.

 

[Captante]

So you're saying, this may not be totally cut-n-dry?

I still think that friend 2 is largely at fault (negligent), for not using an anti-flea collar or treatment for his cat. Especially if he lets the cat outside.

Yep sorry.... the fleas could have come from literally anywhere.

I do however agree that at the least the cat should have had some preventive treatment.

 

[mikeymikec]

Both friends should have flea-treated their pets to begin with. Our cats get a treatment every month (or other month? wife handles the frequency of the meds), we just stick some liquid/ointment on the cat's neck, job done.

We took a cat in off the street once which had fleas. Same treatment, no more fleas.

 

[snoopy7548]

nvm

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

I've had multiple cats most of my life, two came from a shelter, had fleas, one bath and revolution and they were good. Limited outdoor exposure, primarily indoor, never had a flea problem since.

Tell them to stop being bitches about it and just get some revolution.

 

[Torn Mind]

My neighbor has flea infestation. I notified them 3 months ago. They denied it. I told them I'm serving them papers today and - Legal Answers

My neighbor has flea infestation. I notified them 3 months ago. They denied it. I told them I'm serving them papers today and

www.avvo.com

Really comes down to duty of care and having the hard evidence to prove a causal link.


Now, if I personally were making a judgment, the use of bombs would be imo bad faith for the reasons I mentioned earlier. I do not know how the "law" and case history would view the use of bombs, but I know I wouldn't give a cent to someone who used a bomb to try to kill adult fleas.

I experienced fleas murdering me for a month or two, but with no pets; either they were dormant for years between the time previous residents/owner vacated and/or rodents (I did observe one mouse) brought them in. The relief finally came when I did use the very-clearly-advertised-for-fleas "soaker spray" type of product and we could see the dead in the carpet. Heck, it might have even came from a university computer lab because I was really feeling itchy in my ankle areas one day while using the lab computer but didn't take notice.

Sometimes, going through the woods don't result in fleas. I had a cat that did outdoor hunting in the woods and did observe ticks a couple times, but the house she lived in never got fleas.

In the legal system though, someone who has hard evidence will have an advantage. Friend 2 not having a flea collar and letting the cat outside could very well be legally "vulnerable" for negligence. But this is very dependent on the facts, specifically what "going out on the porch" means. Is the porch concrete, dirt, grass, etc? Were there woods nearby? Unmaintained vegetation, etc?

As matter of actual fact, it's hard to say who is really truthful. The dog very well may have dropped some eggs and the residents are merely saying they didn't notice for the sake of helping friend 1 win. That friend 1 uses a bomb instead of the specific, proper spray is suspect as well.

As far as legal "facts" go, friend 2 is at a disadvantage due to the lack of a flea collar. If Friend 1 can get another to testify on his behalf, he is more likely to win on his case. For friend 2 to win, he needs to get information on that dog and its owner, it's treatment history, etc; in short, getting the evidence and the owner to court is much harder for him.

Lastly, this case sounds like something that is screaming for TV arbitration like Judge Judy. lol

 

[Captante]

Fleas are most commonly brought into to animal-free houses when the weather is very dry and hot in late summer/early fall and their "preferred" hangout is a grassy lawn.

Just like with bed bugs all it takes is ONE fertilized female hitching a ride in your sock then laying eggs in the carpet to cause an infestation.

 

[waffleironhead]

8 months?

thats way outside of the range eggs will still be viable. Cat owner is solely responsible for the fleas.

 

[Captante]

thats way outside of the range eggs will still be viable. Cat owner is solely responsible for the fleas.

This only applies to the eggs laid while to dog was still around.... a few "stragglers" could have hung on for several months at the least with the very occasional (and unnoticed) bite to sustain them, then their eggs repeat the process.

Regardless the cat-owner IS primarily responsible for their cat getting fleas by virtue of failing to be proactive.

 

[Meghan54]

Both friends should have flea-treated their pets to begin with. Our cats get a treatment every month (or other month? wife handles the frequency of the meds), we just stick some liquid/ointment on the cat's neck, job done.

We took a cat in off the street once which had fleas. Same treatment, no more fleas.

We use Cheristin on our cats. Have had fewer outbreaks and far fewer bad reactions (skin irritation, etc.) than any other product

Would NOT USE Seresto. Too many “side effects” like death.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Without reading the whole thread here’s my experience with fleas.
Years ago our dog got fleas somehow, my wife was insistent on a mostly natural treatment which involved diatomaceous earth and some capstar (I think) tablet.
The diatomaceous earth did reduce the flea population but as all organic pest treatments it didn’t fully solve the problem and it was extremely messy.
What I ended up doing is when she was at work I sprayed the crap out of everything in the apartment with flea stuff I picked up at Walmart can’t remember which brand. I sprayed everything even under every cushion and piece of furniture. I also washed everything that could be washed in hot water. I repeated the process a few weeks later to get any eggs that had hatched since first treatment. Hit google for that time frame I forgot.
Also vacuuming every day helps.

**Also per our vet at the time**
Only really hungry ticks/fleas get on cats, something about cats blood doesn’t provide them with proper nutrition.

edit: giving our cat a capstar was like dropping a nuclear bomb on the fleas. Worked nearly instantly and you could see fleas falling off him. Sadly capstar is only effective for like 12 hours or something.

https://www.amazon.com/CAPSTAR-Treatment-Tablets-Killing-Minutes/dp/B07Q1TKTP9/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?crid=6W2ALD9LS2S6&keywords=capstar&qid=1671120461&rdc=1&sprefix=capstar%2Caps%2C96&sr=8-4

 

[Scarpozzi]

Fleas are tough and can last in a dormant state for years.

IMO, bug bombing is just more show than substance, better for flying critters and the likes of ants. Fleas have their own soaking type sprays.

Rodents can bring in fleas as well.

I like bug bombing indoors and the bugfree backyard sprays because it does *reset conditions. Mosquitos, in-particular, take time to overtake an area because they don't migrate. For indoors, as much as I like spiders, bombing helps eliminate the spiders and whatever they're feeding on. We used to bomb our cabin before we ditched the carpet and put in hardwood floors. Now, I just hit the corners with a broom, wipe the shelves with a good cleaner, and mop the floors when we open it up in the Spring.....running an air filter in there helps "collect" small flies and other bugs that may attract spiders. I usually end up with a stack of them in the prefilter.

 

[Captante]

Mosquitos, in-particular, take time to overtake an area because they don't migrate.

Incorrect. Even the kinds that don't "migrate" more than a few hundred feet have NO TROUBLE flying right into your yard and MANY kinds travel multiple miles in search of a blood-meal.


How far can mosquitoes fly?

Mosquito species preferring to breed around the house, like the Asian Tiger Mosquito, have limited flight ranges of about 300 feet.

Most species have flight ranges of 1-3 miles. Certain large pool breeders in the Midwest US are often found up to 7 miles from known breeding spots.

The undisputed champions, though, are the saltmarsh breeders - having been known to migrate up to 100 miles in exceptional circumstances, although 20 to 40 miles are much more common when hosts are scarce. When caught up in updrafts that direct them into winds high above the ground, mosquitoes can be carried great distances.

(Mosquito.org)


American Mosquito Control Association

 

[lxskllr]

I rescued a spider last night. I saw the girl cat crouched down looking like she was up no good. When I called her on it, she moved, and I saw a spider desperately trying to get away from her. I blew the spider under the washing machine where she couldn't get to it. He lived to be creepy for another day at least.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Incorrect. Even the kinds that don't "migrate" more than a few hundred feet have NO TROUBLE flying right into your yard and MANY kinds travel multiple miles in search of a blood-meal.


How far can mosquitoes fly?

Mosquito species preferring to breed around the house, like the Asian Tiger Mosquito, have limited flight ranges of about 300 feet.

Most species have flight ranges of 1-3 miles. Certain large pool breeders in the Midwest US are often found up to 7 miles from known breeding spots.

The undisputed champions, though, are the saltmarsh breeders - having been known to migrate up to 100 miles in exceptional circumstances, although 20 to 40 miles are much more common when hosts are scarce. When caught up in updrafts that direct them into winds high above the ground, mosquitoes can be carried great distances.

(Mosquito.org)


American Mosquito Control Association

Good to know. I always assumed they were carried by wind and hovered the rest of the time. So treating an area with fogging or spray would be somewhat effective at curbing their local populations as long as you don't live near a swamp or leave standing water around.

 

[Brainonska511]

Good to know. I always assumed they were carried by wind and hovered the rest of the time. So treating an area with fogging or spray would be somewhat effective at curbing their local populations as long as you don't live near a swamp or leave standing water around.

The best thing to keep local mosquitos at bay is to remove standing water, and have neighbors do the same. Mosquitos only need a few inches to breed.